Student Academic Information

Grading Policy

A standard percentage scale is used school wide:

 93% - 100% = A  (4.00) EXCELLENT
 90% - 92%   = A- (4.00) 
 87% - 89%   = B+ (3.00)
 83% - 86%   = B   (3.00) ABOVE AVERAGE
 80% - 82%   = B-  (3.00)
 77% - 79%   = C+ (2.00) 
 73% - 76%   = C   (2.00) AVERAGE
 70% - 72%   = C-  (2.00) 
 67% - 69%   = D+ (1.00)
 63% - 66%   = D   (1.00) BELOW AVERAGE
 60% - 62%   = D-  (1.00) 
 59% and BELOW = F (0.00) FAILURE

Grades earned in all high school Honors or Advanced Placement courses will receive an extra full grade point bump when calculated into the cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA). This point bump will apply, however, only to grades of C or better.

Grades of ‘D’ or ‘F’ made up at Grace Brethren are averaged into the cumulative GPA. For eligibility consideration, the full grade (not the average) will be considered when calculating the GPA.

Final Examinations

Comprehensive finals are given at the end of each semester. The final may be worth no less than 10% and no more than 20% of the student’s overall grade. A special exam schedule for final examinations will be published near the end of each semester on RenWeb and in the front office. Seniors and 8th grade students take second semester finals early.

ALL FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS MUST BE CURRENT IN ORDER FOR STUDENTS TO TAKE FINAL EXAMS AT THE END OF EITHER SEMESTER.

Grading Periods

Teachers are required to update their grade books every two weeks. Grading periods are five to seven weeks each and serve to advise in areas of probation and ineligibility. Permanent transcript grades are sent home at the end of each semester. The report card will not include a conduct grade but will include attendance information as well as comments from teachers. Eligibility for school athletics and other co- curricular activities is determined by each grading period. For more information on student eligibility see the Probation and Ineligibility section of this Parent/Student Handbook.

All courses which have been marked as ‘incomplete’ must be completed within four weeks of the end of the semester or a grade of ‘F’ will be entered.

Class Standing

Class standing will be based on the total number of credits successfully achieved.

1. To be eligible for sophomore status and activities, a student must have completed 70 credits at the end of freshman year.
2. To be eligible for junior status and activities, a student must have completed 140 credits at the end of sophomore year.
3. To be eligible for senior status and activities, a student must have completed 210 credits at the end of junior year.

Students who are unable to matriculate to the next grade level due to poor grades and insufficient credits must make up all necessary coursework over the summer. If a student is unable to complete the credits necessary for matriculation, a meeting will be scheduled with the student, parents, Guidance Counselor, and the Principal to determine if the student will be eligible to return to GBS in the fall.

In order to advance in any Math or Foreign Language course, students must have earned at least a C- or better. If this is not the case, students will be required to repeat these courses in summer school.

If a student receives a D in Math or Foreign Language in the first semester, he/she may waive the summer school requirement by achieving an 80% or better by the end-of-the-year. This does not apply to first semester Fs.

Tutoring

• Every instructor is available for extra help after school from 2:30 to 3:30 pm.  Please let the instructor know ahead of time and they will be there to assist.  In addition to this, we offer subject specific tutoring labs in both math and writing.
• Peer tutoring is offered twice per week for all levels of math.  This highly productive environment is overseen by staff and is an opportunity for your students to get one-on-one assistance in math from either an instructor or an upperclassman.  It is offered twice per week from 2:30 to 3:30 pm.  Days and location will be announced at the start of the year.
• The Writing Center is a place that is open twice per week from 2:30 to 3:30 pm as well. Here, students can bring an essay or another major writing assignment they are working on and get professional assistance from either an instructor or an upperclassman.   Days and locations will be announced at the start of the year.
• For extra tutoring, our Student Services office provides a list of highly qualified, subject area specific tutors for hire.  See Miss Summer Martin for details.

Course Selections

Course selections will occur in the spring of each year for the following school year. It is important to note that every effort is made to accommodate a student’s desired course selections. However, in some cases, students may not receive all the courses they choose.

AP, Honors, and Advanced Level Courses

AP, Honors, and other advanced level courses are intended to challenge a student beyond the already difficult level of College Preparation. Students who wish to challenge themselves in these courses must accept full responsibility for the rigorous educational demands.

Students are responsible for checking to ensure they meet the prerequisites for these courses prior to signing up. Students must meet the prerequisite standards in order to take advanced level courses.

Prerequisite requirements are as follows:

1. A- or better in the previous non-Honors or AP class.
2. B or better in the previous Honors or AP class.
3. and/or a teacher recommendation.

Grades earned in all high school Honors or Advanced Placement courses will receive an extra full grade point bump when calculated into the cumulative GPA. This point bump will apply, however, only to grades of C or better.

Advanced Placement (AP) tests are taken in an attempt to receive college credit for work completed in high school. College credit will depend upon the score received on the tests as well as the requirements set forth by individual colleges. These tests are administered by GBHS. The dates and times are set by The College Board. An AP test may be taken without having taken the AP class. A fee is required for each test taken. All students enrolled in AP classes are required to take the AP examination. Students who do not wish to take the exam, may petition their teacher by February 1st. The Administration, with teacher input, will consider each petition individually. Students who take an AP course, but fail to take the AP examination (without pre-approval from the Administration), will incur a 10% reduction in their second semester grade.

Dual Credit: Some classes offered at Grace Brethren High School may be taken for dual credit at a college. Please see the College Counselor for more details.

Class Withdrawal/Changes

Students may drop/add courses during the FIRST week of each semester. Legitimate requests to drop or add courses during this period may be initiated at the request of the student, parent, teacher, or an administrator. Proper paperwork must be filled out and approved by the Guidance Counselor before a

change is made. This paperwork can be found in the Student Services Center. Withdrawing after the first week of school, and before the end of the seventh week, will result in a ‘W’ on your child’s permanent transcript. However, the ‘W’ notation will not affect the student’s cumulative GPA. Withdrawal after the seventh week of the semester will result in a ‘W/F’ grade, which will affect the student’s cumulative GPA. All class changes require a parent’s signature and Guidance Counselor approval. All schedule changes are subject to appropriate prerequisites and schedule accommodations.

As a College Preparatory school, GBS encourages students to consider four-year colleges and/or universities upon graduation from high school. Because of this, students and parents are highly encouraged to seek college counseling early on in their high school career.

GBS contracts with online textbook vendor MBS Direct, which is owned by Barnes & Nobles, for all textbook purchases. Details about how to order books, as well as which textbooks will be required next year, may be found at https://bnck-12.com/gracebrethren. Next year's book list will be posted on this site on July 6th. 

Credits for PE are not repeatable. 
Transcripts of transfer students will be evaluated and approved by Administration.

Seniors MUST be enrolled in a minimum of six (6) courses each semester; however, a full course load of seven (7) classes is highly recommended. Students who do not have a 2.6 cumulative GPA or higher and a minimum of 210 units at the start of their senior year are not eligible for a free period.

In order to participate in the Graduation Ceremony and/or receive a Grace Brethren high school diploma, seniors must meet the following requirements:

1. Complete all academic requirements and accumulate the 270 credits necessary for graduation.
2. Have all financial obligations to the school paid in full.*
3. Have a satisfactory disciplinary record.
4. Have a minimum GPA of a 2.0 with no more than three (3) semester F’s in his/her 4-year high school career**

*Any petition for special arrangements regarding financial obligations must be made to the Executive Director’s Office.

**Any student failing to meet these academic or disciplinary requirements may petition the principal for inclusion in the graduation ceremony. Diplomas, however, will not be conferred until all academic requirements are met.

In order to receive a promotion certificate, 8th grade students must complete all academic requirements necessary for promotion (as outlined above) as well as the following:

1. Have all financial obligations to the school paid-in-full.
2. Have a minimum GPA of a 2.0 in all core classes.
3. Have no more than 3 semester Fs in their 2 years of junior high.**
4. Have a satisfactory disciplinary record.

**Any student receiving an average grade of F in any core subject for the semester must attend summer school before promotion to the 9th grade. The student must be enrolled in the summer school program to meet this deficiency in order to participate in the promotion ceremony.

Transfer Students: Upon acceptance to Grace Brethren Junior-Senior High School, all approved credits and graduation/promotion requirements from previous educational institutions will be counted towards graduation. This includes appropriately documented coursework through a home school environment. Any coursework taken off campus must be approved by Administration and documented with a transcript.

Off-campus Physical Education credits will be considered based on adequate levels of the following conditions:

• A thorough description of the activity.
• An explanation of the rigor and physical requirements of the activity.
• The level and frequency of competition.
• The number of hours per week the student is engaged in this activity.
• The signature and contact information of a coach or official who can verify all of the above.

For High School Students Only:

Visual Performing Arts: All required coursework must be accomplished at Grace Brethren.

Foreign Language: Students may satisfy their two year foreign language requirement in an alternative setting. The alternative setting must be presented to and approved by the Principal prior to taking the class. In such cases, it will be incumbent upon the student to demonstrate the educational advantage to making such a decision.

Critical Thinking: This course is offered for credit at Grace Brethren Schools during the summer. It may be taken in an alternative setting. The alternative setting must be presented to and approved by the Principal prior to taking the class. In such cases, it will be incumbent upon the student to demonstrate the educational advantage to making such a decision.

Other Policies:

• Students are prohibited from taking an off campus course in lieu of maintaining full time status. Students must be enrolled in seven (7) courses in the 7th through 11th grades and in at least six (6) courses in the 12th grade.
• Students may not take an off campus course for credit in lieu of having a 7th class on campus.
• The total number of credits that may be taken off campus may not exceed 45 credits throughout the four years of high school.
• Math may be taken off campus for advancement purposes.

After school until 3:30 p.m., GBS instructors are all required to make themselves available for free after school tutoring. Tutoring times should be scheduled with individual instructors.

Inclusion on the Honor Roll is based on the student’s weighted grade point average (GPA) for the semester just completed.

Laureate - 4.00 Average with all A's at 90% or above
Highest Honors - 4.00 Average and above
High Honors - 3.67 - 3.99 Average
Honors - 3.00 - 3.66 Average

Students with a D or F in any subjects for the semester are excluded from the Honor Roll.

Honor Roll recipients are honored twice per year at an awards chapel. Parents are welcome to attend these events and will be notified of their occurrences.

Honor graduates are students who earn the requisite cumulative GPA over the course all four (4) semesters of junior high or all eight (8) semesters of high school.

Awards are also given to fulltime students in each grade level based upon academic excellence earned each year in specific disciplines and are conferred in English, Mathematics, Foreign Language, Social Science, Science, Bible, and the Arts. A Most Outstanding Student for each grade level will also be awarded.

In addition to these yearly academic awards, the following are the list of special awards presented to promoting eighth graders:

1. The Hope of America Award: The Hope of America award, presented by the Kiwanis Club, is one that recognizes and encourages graduating elementary and middle school students who possess outstanding leadership ability, ethical, and moral character, achievement in academic studies, and show promise of future success and service to the community.
2. The David Award: This award is conferred upon both a male and female student who exemplify excellence in the four (4) areas of academics, athletics, leadership, and spiritual maturity.
3. The Selah Award: This award is conferred upon both a male and female student who exemplify excellence in the four areas of academics, arts, leadership, and spiritual maturity

Each year, a special senior awards ceremony will be held. At this event, the following senior awards may be conferred:

1. Valedictorian: Principal’s Advisory Committee, in consultation with the senior class, and the faculty, bestows this honor to a senior with a high GPA who has displayed outstanding leadership and involvement in activities/sports. The Valedictorian is chosen from amongst the top ten (10) highest GPA students in their senior class.
2. Salutatorian: Principal’s Advisory Committee, in consultation with the senior class, and the faculty, bestows this honor to a senior who can best present the history of the class. The Salutatorian is chosen from amongst the top ten (10) highest GPA students in their senior class.
3. The Daniel Award: This award is conferred upon both a male and female senior who exemplify excellence in the four (4) areas of academics, athletics, leadership, and spiritual maturity.
4. The Jubilant Award: This award is conferred upon both a male and female student who exemplify excellence in the four areas of academics, arts, leadership, and spiritual maturity
5. The Lancer Citizenship Award: This award recognizes a student who is an example of a future model citizen through their spiritual development, social and academic growth, and involvement on campus. The Citizenship Award recognizes a student who best exemplifies these qualities.
6. The Lancer Service Award: This award is presented to the senior who has stood out over their high school years as an individual who reaches out in service to others, thereby exemplifying Christ-like love for God’s creation.
7. The Lancer Leadership Award: This award recognizes seniors who lead their fellow students selflessly for the encouragement of others and the edifying of the school.
8. The Spiritual Leadership Award: This award recognizes a student with a high level of academic and spiritual enthusiasm who also shares this enthusiasm with classmates. The recognized students demonstrate a desire for Christlikeness which they share with classmates and staff alike.
9. The International Student Award: This award recognizes and international student who demonstrates quality in all aspects of life at Grace Brethren. This student shows excellence in academics, in activities, and in interactions during their time as a Lancer.
10. Laureate Graduate: This graduation status is awarded to students who earned a 90% or above in every class throughout their very rigorous four-year program at Grace Brethren
11. Grace Brethren Excellence Awards: Grace Brethren faculty and administration gives this award to the top 10% of students from each class in five (5) separate categories: Academics, Leadership, Christian Service, Arts, and Athletics.

Students are required to have a 2.0 or above cumulative GPA to graduate from GBS. If a student’s semester GPA falls below 2.0 at the end of any grading period, the student will be placed on Academic Probation for the following grading period.

Additionally, any student who has an F on their report card could also be placed on Academic Probation, regardless of his/her GPA, at the discretion of the Principal. While on Academic Probation, students may continue to participate in athletic and co-curricular school activities.

Should the student have below a 2.0 GPA at the next grading period, he/she will become academically ineligible. Ineligible students may not participate in either athletic events (including practices in season) or co-curricular activities (such as drama, music, leadership, clubs or field trips). Students will remain academically ineligible until their GPA is brought to a 2.0 or above at the next grading period. Parents will receive formal, written notice of all such academic standings.

All probationary and ineligibility guidelines meet or exceed those as put forth by the California Interschoolastic Federation (CIF).

Should a student become ineligible in the last grading period of the year, summer school at GBS may be used as a grading period to rescind this ineligibility. Should GBS not offer the required course over the summer, outside coursework will be considered.

Achievement Tests: The TerraNova standardized tests are given annually to help identify the student’s level of achievement.

PSAT/NMSQT: The Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test is given annually by the school each October.

The PSAT acquaints students with the SAT but does not substitute for it. Sophomores and Juniors are required to take this test. Freshmen may also elect to take this test. The results provide students with information on their potential performance on college entrance exams. This is the only qualifying test for the National Merit Scholarship program which offers recognition and scholarships for high achievement.

The PLAN test acquaints students with the ACT but does not substitute for it. Sophomores are required to take this test. The results provide students with information regarding their potential performance on the ACT college entrance exams.

SAT and ACT Tests: The SAT and ACT tests are national aptitude tests which are required by most four-year colleges for entrance. Registration forms and information are available in the Student Services Office. These tests are administered on various Saturdays during the year at a variety of test sites. It is recommended that these tests be taken in the fall and spring of the junior year and in the fall of the senior year.

Please note that some colleges and universities require the SAT II Test. Please consult your school of choice for directives.

Student Records

Student school records are kept in the school office. According to the California State Department of Education:

• Parents of currently enrolled or former pupils have an absolute right to access any and all pupil records related to their children, which are maintained by school districts or private schools. The editing or withholding of any such records, except as [specifically] provided for [by law], is prohibited. (Section 49069)
• Parents who wish to view their student’s school records must make an appointment with a school administrator to view those records.
• It is the policy of Grace Brethren Schools that student discipline records never be issued to any individual other than the parent or guardian.
• Official transcript requests need to be made in writing to the registrar. Grace Brethren graduating seniors who are applying for colleges and/or universities will receive official transcripts for every school to which they apply. Please allow 48 hours, during the school week, to fulfill requests.

 

Grace Brethren is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and by the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI). It is also a member of the approved Secondary Schools of the University of California.